The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1887-12-01
CASTLE FOLLY.

came OF a great family, and when he
proposed to marry a poor obscure
cousin. Miss Lucy Acton by name,
his relatives lew to arms at the mere
mention of such a sho cking mesal
lance. Miss Alkaline Ravenal, his
aunt, who had lived much in Paris,
declared that he had sold himself
merely for deux beaux yeux. but
young Albert Edmund had the manli-
ness to stand firm in the face OF her
wrath and confess that those "two
beautiful eyes" were more to him than
Golfers OF gold.
Failing with this argument, Miss
Alkaline and the other Ravenals, one
and all, raised another Mortified cry
first cousins! Such marriages had
been by no means unpopular in the
Ravenal family heretofore. but these
had been marriages de convenance-
a very different thing. Not all that
ugly array of old skeletons which they
fished out OF their memories and
placed before him could brighten stout
hearted Albert Edmund, however,
and the happy day came when he
made lovely, blushing Miss Lucy Ac-
ton his wife.
They went to live on St. Simon's
Island, off the Georgia coast. where
there was fine estate which had been
in the family for three generations,
and here their children were brought
up and privately educated. Though
the mother brought six children into
the world, only two survived the per-
lis OF infancy-Alberta, the first born,
and Edmund Acton, three years
younger. The friendship between this
sister and brother was almost I'M
natural in its intensity.
At sixteen Alberta was tall and
queenly, with the shapely white face
and beaux yeux OF her mother. and
she had great masses of wavy yellow
hair. Both these children promised
we'll, and fulfilled her promise;
but after his thirteenth year Actions
mind seemed to 60 under cloud,
and it was soon evident that-as the
cynical old grandaunt, Miss Alkaline,
put it-there was "a screw loose
somewhere" The Ravenals who had
opposed the marriage were not slow
to say, 81 told you So" but the I'M
happy father bore it all manfully, re-
fusiny to believe that his marriage
with his cousin was in any way con.
nected with his poor boys misfortune.
On the heels Of this calamity came
the war. Albert Edmund Ravenal,
ESQ.,, went into the army and was
made colonel almost at once. For
time all was glory; the colonel came
home on his fui loughs and went back
again, laughing and Joking always
when poor Acton was absent from
his thoughts, as if the serious bust
ness of war were no more than a mock
tournament at holiday feast. But
the dark days came-in the very next
battle the gallant colonel was shot and
instantly killed. Then, just as the
war ended, the stricken wife, who had
never been strong, gave up and died,
leaving Alberta, now a full-blown
young lady, and the unfortunate
young boy Acton, aged seventeen, in
care of Aunt Dicey.
1t is related that Mrs. RavenaPs
last speech was: alberta, take care
of Acton. Dicey, take care of ALDER
ta." So these three were bound to-
gether. Aunt Dicey needed not this
promise to the dead, however, to
bind her to the fortunes OF these chill
dren, whom she truly seemed to love
more than her new freedom.
When the news of her fathers death
arrived, Alberta had gone about with
the dumb, piteous look of q bruised,
beaten creature, and swallowed nc
morsel of food for three days, and
now, quite wild with grief at the loss
of both parents, she was almost as
incapable as the unhappy Acton of as
Stunning any direction of affairs, so old
Aunt Dicey managed everything, re
newing, with Alberta's sanction, the
standing arrangement with the over
seer, who was now to make a limited
s~1op with such labor as he coulo
bring together-no easy undertaking
at that troubled period. 1t was out
of the question to 60 back to St. ST
mons now, where everything was II
ruins, and they looked upon the plan
tation as their future home.
But this arrangementfo found no favor
with the old grandaunt, Miss Alkaline
and she speedily interfered. Her plar
was to adopt Alberta and place Actor
in an asylum. So down she came an6
carried them both off to the city
leaving heart.broken Aunt Dicey
to look after the plantation
Wary old Miss Alkaline sale
nothing at first to Alberta about
the second half of her plar
and bore patiently with poor
Acton, who behaved very badly al
times. But the time for open speech
and act came at length, and ther
there was war. Miss Alkaline Ravena
had not counted on the quality o
that affection which cemented thil
brother and sister together, nor up
on the spirit and determination o
Miss Alberta, who soon showed her
self to he her fathers daughter.
That in poor Acton's spiritua
anatomy there was "a screw loos'
somewhere"-that he had slack
and sometimes a most deplorabl'
lack, Alberta would admit; but thai
it was serious enough to call for tn
necessity of exiting him to an asylum
for the insane, she bitterly denied, ant
would listen to no argument. Sh,
held her head like queen and for
bade them to gpeak to her of a plal
$50 outrageously wicked" And Their
was war. Old Miss Adallne who wa
born to rule, was furious enough. w
may be sure, at this opposition from
q girl hardly out of her teens. It j!
said that on one occasion she shool
her slipper vioiously at Alberta ant
shrieked-"Girl you'll put me in my
gravel" And SO the war waged-hart
pressed Alberta being forced to main
tain her line OF battle against tn
overwhelming allied forces of all tn
Ravenals.
This could not last always. Sh'
must either surrender or beat q re
treat-in other words, take Actor
and run. And this last she did-slip
ming awav with him in spite of then